On a Dark Path
by LoreoftheFaye
Summary: In the wake of Randall's death Giles is trying to find his place in the world. When the Council sends him after Ethan he's not sure how he can do as they ask to his former friend. And when something new comes along it changes them both forever...please R&R
1. Chapter 1

It had been a month since Rupert swallowed his pride, admitted his father had been right, and pushed open the doors to the Council building buried in the heart of London. When he rebelled he had promised himself that he would never end up like these dead eyed stuff shirts and yet here he was among them, learning their craft and following in his family's footsteps. The memory of Randall haunted him at every turn and kept him on this new path.

There had been so much to experience, so much to do and consume! The world had offered and he had devoured those offerings in turn, taking each sensation to its highest point. Magic and hedonism had been an addiction, drawing him deeper and deeper into its bosom before he knew to fight. It took losing a friend through his reckless choices to make him hit the bottom that had always been coming. The funeral was a small, somber affair. He kept his distance from the others but saw them all there across the casket from him. Ethan lingered in the back glowering dark and dangerous over the rest of them. They all stood there in various shades of distress for their own reasons and kept their heads bowed while someone who didn't really know him spoke of their fallen friend, the one they inadvertently killed.

No one really approached one another afterward. They didn't grab a pint down at Liam's like old times. The bond was broken. That left Ethan alone in a corner of the bar with a pint, stewing about the defection from their little gang. Ripper was gone now, Dierdre too. Randall was in the ground. He felt alone.

"Oi, Liam, double bourbon straight."

Beer was not getting the job done tonight.

It had been a month since the funeral and since he'd seen anyone from the gang. The mark of Eyghon burned tonight, but not because of the demon it could summon.

The door opened. Normally Ethan wouldn't have given a good god damn about who walked through it but something caused his hair to stand on end. A familiar voice ordered a pint and Ethan looked up in time to see the aging man slide it toward a very familiar face. Once confirmed he ducked his eyes down again, not drunk enough to follow through on the confrontation his mind was concocting. The bourbon would help and he slung it back with ease, scowling. So far he was unnoticed but not for long.

"Well look who's here? I believe it's a traitor."

He moved from his chair, keeping himself upright at least as he sauntered over. It was easy to spot the dread that crossed the other man's face when he heard the voice that spoke and knew who it belonged to. He had only wanted to come in and take the edge off his nerves. Nothing was ever so simple, he should have known better but he just didn't want to surrender something else because of this blasted separation! Rupert looked up, jade eyes burning into Ethan's. The other man stared back hard, glowering.

"Isn't there a nancy pub you can drink in with all of your new Council friends?"

"Don't do this, Ethan," he warned quietly, looking dead weary.

"Don't what? Tell the truth? I think we're far past the point where you can give me advice. You don't rule the roost anymore." Giles didn't answer so he growled, continuing. "Since when do you care enough to give advice, anyway? Our games were good enough for you while you were having fun and we have one little setback…"

"Setback? A man died, Ethan! Our friend died!"

"Since when did you not know the risk? You're such a weak bloody pillock, running back to Daddy and everything you hate because something went wrong and you had to pay the piper."

"That could have been you, Ethan. It could have been me. I'm not the only one who left because of it. It's called growing up and we all have to at some point. It's apparently just taking you longer than everyone else. Stop clinging to that old shit. It's dangerous. You'll end up no better off than Randall."

"It was your idea to do it. You can't even take responsibility. You say I'm not growing up? Bollocks to you, Ripper."

"Rupert."

Ethan blinked at him, that one word sending more shock down his spine than any of the previous confrontation. The other shook his head and looked down into his mug.

"I don't deny who I was. I just can't see continuing to be that man anymore. If you want to cling to the old ways do it, but away from me. You're not immortal, Ethan. One day your bill is going to come due and I don't want to be around to see it."

"I know my own mortality, mate, but I guess I'm the only one that remembers the juice is worth the squeeze. You lot are all cowards. I'm sorry someone clipped your berries but mine are still intact."

Giles slammed his pint glass onto the bar and looked at his former friend. He wasn't about to make the confrontation physical but it was awfully tempting. Instead he threw a couple of quid on the bar for Liam's time and trouble and prepared to leave, silently saying goodbye to this place and the years it represented. If there was even a chance of running into Ethan it simply wasn't worth it.

"People like us don't change overnight, Ripper. One day you'll wake up wanting to blow your brains out in that Council of yours and you'll come crawling back to us, this life. We're just the same."

"You won't see me again, walking or crawling."

"I can be a patient man when I want to be. All that power is still there crawling beneath your skin. We don't change, people like us. We may look like it. We can even act like it for a time but it's never true. We want everything that's worst for us."

"Goodbye, Ethan."

Giles walked out while the other man fumed behind him. He couldn't afford to turn back and give the bar a last look. He couldn't risk one more word that might spark a new flame. He was right about one thing: there was power crawling beneath his skin begging to come out. If he gave in now he'd sink back into old habits just like the other man predicted. It took some doing but he pushed out onto the street and prowled for the rest of the night like a cat, looking for somewhere to let off the coiled pressure in his belly.


	2. Chapter 2

Ethan came out of the bar with only dark intentions on his mind. He was still fuming about what Giles had said to him and though there was probably some truth to be gleaned on both sides neither one was capable of hearing it. Giles went off in search of that soothing drink he'd had his heart set on while Ethan found himself in a club they often frequented, a creature of habit. A few shots there had him even deeper in his cups. A pretty young thing came up to him. He recognized her as Heather. He'd danced with her a few times.

"Where's Ripper? Is he coming tonight?"

Ethan scowled. That was exactly the wrong thing to say to an already resentful mage and rival.

"'Fraid not." he answered, glaring daggers at her. The lights flickered around him with a sudden outpouring of magic he didn't realize he'd released, not that it mattered to him. Blessedly she left in a hurry.

Ethan glanced at the clock and grinned. Midnight was finally fast approaching and that meant show time. He left the club and moved through side streets and back alleys toward the warehouse district. A few years prior they'd found an abandoned building on the edge of the district and had taken it over for massive parties they threw late in the night full of magic and music and sex. They'd gotten quite popular in the underground. Even those that didn't have magic to use came to partake of the sights and other offerings.

He sat on a large throne at the head of the room, raised up a little to get a good look at the band playing and the people drifting all over the building. It used to be Giles' chair and often girls flocked the platform hoping to be the one he decided to take home that evening. Now its owner was usurped by a darker and drunker version of its master. Slowly, Ethan started pooling magic from the air, muttering words of power beneath his breath to gather energy from everyone in the room. If any of the previous shows had been good his inauguration was going to be explosive.

Giles felt it. Their circle had always been connected. The magic they used had often been shared between them in order to pull off more powerful spells. He felt the pooling of something powerful and dark and cursed under his breath. Why did Ethan have to be so wretchedly stupid? There was no time to philosophize as he took off toward their old haunt wondering why tonight had to revolve so much around ties he wanted severed. His former friend was proving to be a bigger thorn in his side than he'd ever imagined.

The other man's buzz was wearing off but a magical high was starting to take its place from all the magic he was pulling from the air, from the people gathered. It was not enough to really affect them physically but the boost he was getting was better than liquor. It would mean pulling off bigger feats later when it was time to get down to business.

Eventually the band ended its primary set and he stood, clapping along with everyone else. It didn't really matter if they were any good or not so long as they were loud and energetic. That feeling of energy permeated the air.

"Welcome!"

He smirked and felt everyone turn toward him, his voice a booming echo to make sure every person there heard it.

"I'm glad you could make it to tonight's festivities. As you can see things are different than they've been before. Call this under new management. And I promise you we'll still have a very good time."

He stretched his hands out over his head and color started to gather over the crowd. A shifting kaleidoscope of light began to dance over everyone crowded between the stage and his dais. Rainbow light shone, weaving together in hypnotic tapestries while everyone ohed and ahed. For Ethan it was almost gentle. It lulled people into a false sense of security and while they were hypnotized he locked each and every door in the place, trapping them all inside, not that anyone knew that yet or would have cared if they did.

He let out a wicked laugh as the lights began to fade.

"As you might be able to tell the usual suspects aren't here with me and as far as I can tell don't intend to enjoy our games ever again." His eyes shone with mirth, finding all this build up to be fun and theatrical. "Nevermind, we don't need them, do we?"

"NO!" the crowd roared back, clapping its approval.

"We can have our own fun without those nancy excuses for magicians, right?"

"RIGHT!"

"Too right we can. We can have more fun without those pillocks around to bring us down. I think I'm gonna start right now."

He began to chant in a very old and very guttural sounding language. His eyes darkened with magic as he chanted, the concrete floor of the warehouse cracking with a sharp sound that resounded through the space, ringing on the metal walls. People backed up, giving the hole a wide berth. They started to scream as a huge clawed hand shot out of the ground and dug into the concrete. It was nothing more than showmanship, a realistic illusion, not no one knew that but Ethan. The panicked people rushed toward the exits to find them locked. That was when fear began to heavily scent the air to accompany the screams and cries.

Giles felt the ground rumbling and heard the screaming as he approached.

"God damnit Ethan, stop this."

He was almost there but feared he was too late to keep people from being hurt. He knew his former friend wasn't out to kill anyone directly but that was a lazy sort of cover since he did not care about people who were hurt or killed passively by his misdeeds through panic or circumstance. He reached the warehouse and tried the doors, cursing when they held fast. He was pretty sure he could break through but it would take time.

He watched everything with a satisfied smile on his lips. It would scare the majority of them off but that didn't matter. Once they found out it was an illusion it would draw a certain crowd, people that weren't afraid of crossing dangerous lines. That's exactly what he was looking for. If everyone else wanted to sod off that was fine by him but the gang wasn't going to die while he could help it. It didn't matter what he had to do.

Giles desperately pulled at the door, knowing that once he got through it was only a matter of time before someone called the police. From there it was a ticking clock to being caught. Some wouldn't talk about what they'd seen, through fear or admiration, but just enough would. He finally laid his hands on the door and tried to break through with magic, counting on Ethan's confidence and distraction to aid him. One door, that's all he needed. The metal groaned, beginning to give against the magical seal. First a little, then more.

The door burst off its hinges, sweeping back behind Giles to skid across the concrete with a sickening shrieking sound. People came swarming out, panicked, and he had to fight to wade in, opposite of their escaping flow.

"Ripper," Ethan grinned. "You made it after all."


End file.
